Illinois high schools test different, often controversial, approach to education

By Diane Rado

Chicago Tribune|

Jan 16, 2018 | 5:00 AM

Jesse J. Rodriguez, superintendent of Proviso Township High Schools District 209, speaks about the new competency-based learning program they are piloting. (Stacey Wescott / Chicago Tribune)

For years, west suburban Proviso East High School was known for dismal test scores and struggling students with elusive college dreams.

It badly needed an academic overhaul — though the challenge would be formidable.

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“I didn’t see hope when I came in the door,” said Patrick Hardy, the charismatic principal who started at the school in 2015-16.

Today, transformation has replaced hopelessness at Proviso East, where administrators, select teachers and a cadre of kids have launched a bold and controversial experiment: They’re abandoning most aspects of traditional classroom instruction and reshaping the way kids learn.

The approach, called competency-based learning, puts the onus on students to study and master skills at their own pace, making their own choices along the way and turning to peers and online searches for answers before they lean on teachers for help. Students may show proficiency on a topic not simply through traditional testing but by using projects, presentations or even activities outside school.

Proviso is one of 10 school districts chosen statewide to pilot competency-based learning, a concept born in the 1960s at the University of Chicago. The theory then and now is that students should learn on their own timetable and receive individualized instruction on the road to mastering academic standards.

Decades later, the model has experienced a resurgence around the country as schools have pushed back on rigid time schedules for learning and one-size-fits all classroom lectures, and the rise in technology in classrooms has helped guide individual student instruction.

In addition to Proviso, other area pilot districts include the Chicago Public Schools, which has six high schools involved; Algonquin-based Huntley Community School District 158; Ridgewood Community High School District 234 in northwest Cook County; and Round Lake Community Unit School District 116 in Lake County.

The pilots are in various stages of planning and implementation, but all focus on instruction changes in high schools, likely a tough sell for parents who learned the traditional way: Teachers lecturing to a group; quizzes, tests and homework; letter grades and GPAs.

In contrast, students in competency-based programs take the time they need to master skills and make their choices in their academic journey.

At Ridgewood High School, math teacher Tristan Kumor started off geometry class on a recent day by asking his students, “How do you want to learn today?”

His 9th and 10th graders sat in groups, with one student using Popsicle sticks to build a bridge. The lesson related to triangles. Kumor traversed the room guiding students individually on their progress, which is part of the way competency-based education plays out.

Computer testing and other work show how kids are progressing, and teachers provide individual feedback to students, acting as facilitators or coaches who monitor student growth and ensure kids are self-directed enough to assist and even teach their peers. The idea is that if a student can teach a peer, it’s clear they know the material.

At Proviso East, signs in classrooms direct students to do several things before going to the teacher: They need to reread the question, check their notes, ask other students for help and search Google for information. If their question is not resolved after all that, they may go to the teacher.

There’s no such thing as an F in the competency-based learning world, because failing is considered an attempt at learning that helps lead to mastery. Depending on the school, students might not receive letter grades on report cards. Some Illinois schools already use a numerical approach, such as 1 to 4, rather than letter grades to show academic progress.

And graduates might not see GPAs on transcripts. Instead, the transcript would show that a student has mastered the various academic standards needed to prepare for college, work and life.

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Educators say the grades and transcripts have been a source of concern, with high schools reluctant to change because that data is used in college admissions.

And even the strongest supporters of competency-based learning acknowledge the challenges ahead as educators, parents and kids process how the program will work.

At Huntley High School, Principal Scott Rowe said 120 incoming freshmen are scheduled to start the program this fall.

“For us, this is a major educational innovation,” Rowe told parents at a December meeting about the program. “This gives us the opportunity and the ability to allow those students to move at their own pace and work with each individual student differently because they’re in different places.

“That’s scary for teachers and it’s very challenging for us,” Rowe said, “which is why this initial program is going to only be 120 students so we can make sure we’re doing it right.”

Last week, Rowe said he had to make a change to the competency-based learning program that would include a GPA on a student’s transcript. He said colleges were “apprehensive” about how they would award scholarships without a GPA.

Round Lake High School already uses a numerical rating approach to grading, but the school converts the numbers to letter grades in order to send the information to colleges.

“It is a huge discussion in education,” said Susan Center, the director of teaching and learning in the Round Lake district. “Multiple articles talk about grades and what we’re doing and why we are keeping them. It is hard to break a system that is over a century old.”

Most states are involved in various efforts to bring competency-based education into classrooms, according to iNACOL, a nonprofit that supports competency-based learning and tracks programs across states. New Hampshire and Maine have been at the forefront, with Maine working toward a system where high school diplomas are awarded based on kids demonstrating proficiency in the state’s academic standards.

Critics say there’s no baseline for what constitutes mastery of standards from one school district to the next, and they question what happens if a student just can’t master a standard — even if that student is working at his or her own pace. Some researchers also have raised questions about whether such changes will diminish the role of the teacher in the classroom.

Center, at Round Lake, said kids who come into high school with challenges or fall far behind usually get extra supports, and that still would be the case under a competency-based learning program.

Illinois has been slower than other states in launching competency-based education. The Illinois General Assembly approved a law in mid-2016 launching competency-based learning pilot programs, but it restricted the number.

The first 10 pilots were approved by the Illinois State Board of Education in 2017, and a second round is now underway, with up to 12 pilot districts expected to be chosen, also focusing on high school programs.

“Transitioning from traditional high school programming to competency-based programming is a major shift in both policy and day-to-day practice, and thus takes a significant amount of time to plan and implement, and provide professional development for staff and education for parents and students,” said Aviva Bowen, spokeswoman for the Illinois Federation of Teachers.

“This transition, then, requires the collaboration of the district leadership, union and community. It also requires funding, none of which the state provides. The districts will need to figure that out.”

Likewise, Illinois Education Association spokeswoman Bridget Shanahan said the union was “generally supportive” of the competency-based learning legislation. But, “we were concerned about the capacity of ISBE and local districts to support the work. We expressed the need for a limited number of high quality programs.”

It’s not clear whether competency-based learning will grow or be sustained in Illinois, particularly without additional funding from the state.

A few years ago, before the state’s pilot program was approved, the Freeport school district west of Rockford launched a similar competency-based education program for certain grades and schools. At the time, Hardy, the Proviso East principal, was the assistant superintendent over curriculum in Freeport.

After a new administration came on board in Freeport, the competency-based program was dropped in favor of focusing on the basics — reading and math, said Duane Meighan, assistant superintendent for curriculum & instruction in Freeport.

Hardy is leaning on the competency-based program as part of a broad transformation at Proviso East.

This school year, 17 classrooms are involved in the competency-based education pilot in a variety of subjects, including English, math, science and art. Teachers volunteered to test the program, and classrooms were equipped with new furniture and other improvements.

Next year, competency-based learning is scheduled to be used for all 9th-grade courses, and the rollout will continue for higher grades over the next four years.